Apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins



March 23, 1948.

R; E. NAUMBURG APPARATUS FOR TREATING FUR-BEARING ANIMAL SKINS Original Filed July 10, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 v wt INVEN TOR. ROBERT E. NAUMBURGY March 23, 1948. R. E. NAUMBURG 2,438,227

APPARATUS FOR TREATING FUR-BEARING ANIMAL SKINS Original Filed July 10, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 59 l L 62 J24 1 1 59 so (so F 3 42 4 INVENTOR. ROBERT E. NAUMBURG Patented Mar. 23,1948

APPARATUS FOR TREATING FUR-BEARING ANIMAL SKINS Robert E. Naumburg, West Englcwood, N. 1., al-

signor to Jonas & Naumburg Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation oi New York Original application July 10, 1944, Serial No. 544,294. Divided and this application April 18, 1945, Serial No. 588,977

15 Claims. (01. 69-28) This invention relates generally to the art of treating fur-bearing animal skins and more particularly to apparatus for treating skins, the fur of which is to be separated from the skin or pelt for subsequent use in making felted products.

This application is a division of my application Serial Number 544,294 filed July 10, 1944.

In the manufacture of felted articles such as I hats, fibres having. felting properties are demanded in vast quantities. For the most part the source of the fibres. as is well known, is turbearing animals; rabbit and beaver fur being most commonly used, although other furs are suitable for the purpose, Rabbit fur, by reason or relative cost, is mor extensively used than any other for making felt hats.

The raw or untreated fur in its natural state is considered, unsuitable for hat making because the fibres lack the desired property or felting. T impart thereto the necessary felting properties it is customary in the art to treat the fur while still attached to the pelt with a carroting solution after which the fur-bearing skins are subjected to a conditioning treatment involving the drying of the carroted skins. Thereafter, the fur is removed from the pelt. As a result or the carroting and other treatment incidental thereto, there are imparted'felting properties to the fur fibres.

In the varioustreatments to which the skins are subjected from the raw state through the stage when the fur is finally conditioned for making felted products such as hats, the skins are wetted or moistened. If wetted before the application of the carrot, the skins are normally dried prior to application of the carroting solution. or course, the application of the carroting solution to the fur wets it to a greater or less extent. It has been the practice to subject the skins to a drying treatment after application of the carroting solution prior to removal of the carroted fur from the pelt. Accordingly, whether carried out before or after the carroting solution is applied to the fur the drying procedure is an important part or parts 01' the process of producing fur fibres having the desired felting characteristics.

Heretofore it was not uncommon practice when treating skins with a mercury carrot to 2 steam pipes to about 26091". The necessary dr ing could be done in about fifteen to twenty minutes but the skins were rendered "yellow." The resulting coloration of the carroted fur made it ulrlidgsirable for use in producing hats of light s a e.

Those skilled in the art will understand, of

2 course, that there are different kinds of carroting solutions and regardless of the type of solution used, a treatment involving a drying operation is employed-prior to removal or the fur from the pelts.

According to another method of drying heretoiore employed, the skins which have been treated with carroting solution (the so-called "white" carrot) are dried vby advancing them on trays through a tunnel where the tempera re advances in stages from about 120 to about 1 0' I". while circulating hot air through the trays.

This method or drying ordinarily requires-about ninety to one hundred minutes. Furthermore, this method depends primarily upon convected heat.

There are other methods employing convected heat in which the temperature of the drying chamber is maintained below F. but of course this requires much longer; twenty-four to fortyeight hours being not uncommon.

The object of the present invention is to provide apparatus wherein may be practiced a different, and more rapid method of drying furbearing animal skins of the type above mentioned.

The invention provides a machine wherein wetted 'or otherwise moistened fur-bearing skins are subjected to infra-red rays or radiant energy in the presence of an atmosphere maintained in tiirbulent state over and in contact with the s as.

According to a preferred apparatus embodying the invention. there is provided a chamber having means to generate infra-red rays, and means to pass a current of air therethrough. Oarroted skins to be dried are passed through this zone in which they are exposed to the infra-red rays or radiant heat while simultaneously passing a current of air at high velocity over and in contact with the skins. the intensity oi the radiant endry the skins in trays in a chamber heated by so ersy being suflicient to cause sinse ns or burning or the fur but for the effect of the moving current the invention comprehends a machine whereinthe steps of applying a carroting solution to the fur-bearing skins and thereafterdrying the skins without intermediate conditioning may be carried out, if desired, in a single uninterrupted pass through the machine; the skins then being in suitable condition for removal, if desired, of the fur from the pelt by the usual cutting machines without the necessity of any additional intermediate conditioning after the drying operation. The apparatus which is described in further detail hereinafter, and which I'have used for drying fur-bearing animal skins on a commercial scale comprises, in general, (1) a heating chamber wherein is maintained a concentrated zone of radiant heat through which the skins to be dried are passed in such manner that the infrared rays strike the surfaces of the skins, (2) an elongate auxiliary drying tunnel communicating with the heating chamber through which the skins are passed after being subjected to the radiant heat rays, (3) means "for maintaining the atmosphere adjacent the skins in a state of turbulence while they are in the path of the radiant heat rays, such means being preferably an air blower capable of causing a large volume of air to pass at high velocity over and in contact with the skins as they are caused to travel through the heating chamber and its associated tunnel, and (4) means for carrying the skins to be treated through the heating chamber and tunnel, such means being preferably a pair of endless flat mesh conveyors arranged with their upper and lower runs respectively passing through the chamber and tunnel in adjacent spaced parallel relationship between which the skins may be held without undue displacement as they are carried through the heating chamber and tunnel.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic of this-invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, andthe manner in which it may be carried out, may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which Fig. 1 is a side view in elevation of apparatus embodying the invention. The view is partly diagrammatic and also partly broken away;

Fig. 2 is a vertical side view in section to larger scale through the heating chamber on line 2-2 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a view on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a side view to largerscale of a brushing device, comprising a rotary brush and associated guides; and

Fig. 5 is a plan view showing the guides.

Referring to the drawings, in which like reference characters denote similar parts, the heating chamber, and its associated tunnel, designated generally by reference characters I and II, respectively, are mounted on suitable supporting or frame members l2. Both the chamber and. tunnel are constructed of heavy sheet metal which is preferably heat insulated. Any suitable insulation means may be employed; asbestos cement l3 being shown in the drawings.

An air duct Hi from an air blower l leads into the interior N5 of the heating chamber, the

entering airport I! extending across substantially the entire width of the heating chamber.

The air blower li takes suction through a eonduit 18 through an air filter l9 as it is desirable to employ clean air. The blower l5 may be driven by a motor (not shown) or other suitable prime mover and should be capable of imparting a hig velocity head to the air discharged fromthe' duct l4. A-chimney 20 connected to the tunnel ll near its discharge and is provided to carry away the air passed into the tunnel together with vapor or fumes which it picks up from the skins being treated. An exhaust fan 20a is mounted within the chimney to aid in exhausting the air and fumes.

To convey the skins to be treated through the heating chamber and the tunnel, a pair of metal endless open mesh flat conveyor belts are provided. An upper conveyor belt 21 is trained over and driven roller 21. a. suflicient number of rollers will be employed and spaced along the runs of the belts to avoid sagging and such rollers may be mounted on suitable supports on the frame such as those indicated by the reference characters 28 and 29 in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3. The rollers may be provided with sprocket gears 30 (see Fig. 3) to en-.'

' gage sprocket chains 3! which are fixed to the edges of the conveyor belts.

It will be observed the upper run 32 of lower conveyor belt 24 extends beyond the upper conveyor belt at the head end of the machine thus providing a moving feeder platform 33 upon which skins to be treated (designated byreference character 50) may be suitably placed and spaced. At the discharge end of the machine the lower run of the upper conveyor belt extends beyond the lower conveyor belt to accommodate the rotary brush 34 described in further detail hereinafter.

It will be further observed the lower run 35 of the upper conveyor belt 2! and the upper run 32 of the lower conveyor belt 24 are maintained in adjacent spaced relationship as they pass through the heating chamber and tunnel of the machine. The two belts are caused to travel at the same lineal speed. This is accomplished by gearing the roller 23 to the driven roller 26 the latter being. driven by a sprocket chain 36 trained over sprockets mounted on the rollers 26 and 21. Roller 21 is driven by a sprocket chain 31 trained over sprockets on the roller 21 and the driven shaft 38 of variable-speed reducer 39. The speed reducer which may be of known type is driven by a prime mover (not shown). Consequently, means are provided to drive the conveyor at any adjusted speed desired and the arrangement of the conveyor belts is such that skins placed upon the travelling feeding platform 33 enter the bight of the conveyor belts and by reason'of the skins then being between the two belts they are, in eifect, clamped and held firmly in fiat condition as they pass through.

duce radiant heat, in my preferred arrangement there are provided a plurality of gas burners 40 r extending across the width of the interior is of the heating chamber. It will be observed. as shown in the drawings, four such burners are disposed in the bottom wall and one such burner in the top wall of the chamber. However, a dinerent number may be employed both top and bottom, the important consideration being to provide ample infra-red rays or radiant energy di-- rected upon the surfaces of the skins to accomplish the desired amount of heating.

Each burner 40 is equipped with an individual shut-oi! valve 4| which is connected by a nipple 42 to its respective burner. Each burner is also provided with a mixer valve 43. The mixer valves are connected to a gas manifold 44 supplied with gas from a suitable source (not shown) by nippies 45 and to an air manifold lilla by nipples 48 equipped with regulator valves 41. Filtered air is supplied to the manifold 800 by an air blower 48 taking suction through a filter 49. This air blower is driven by a suitable prime mover, such as a niotor (not shown).

The bottom wall of the heating chamber (see Fig. 2) is provided with refractory members Bi which are constructed of ceramic material. The spaces between the refractory members 5! and the burners are filled by filler members Bla whose surfaces may be of metallic or other material having good reflector qualities. It will be noted, the burner ports 52 direct the combustion mixture against the upwardly curved surfaces of the troughs 53 provided by the burners and ceramic elements 5| as indicated at 54. The ceramic elements 5| may thus be heated to incandescenoe, Like burners are likewise disposed in the upper wall. The arrangement provides a substantial quantity of radiant heat concentrated in the heating chamber and the infra-red rays are directed into the path of travel ofthe skins 50.

Each burner 40 is provided with a pilot burner to controlled by a valve 56. The pilots are connected to a manifold 51 supplied wtih gas from. a suitable source (not shown). The tip ends of the pilot burners are protected from the air blast through the heating' chamber by pilot baffles 58. By maintaining a pilot light at each' gas burner, the various burners may be turned on or ofl as desired without opening up the heating chamber. However the heating chamber l 0 is provided with an insulated hinged door 59 at either side. The.

doors are provided with windows 60 for convenience in observing the interior of the chamber,

At the discharge end of the tunnel ll there is provided a rotary cylindrical brush 34 which may be mounted on suitable supports and driven in the direction of arrow 34a by a prime mover (not shown). The brush is provided at its' periphery with relatively stiff but flexible bristles 8|, the outer ends of which contact the fur of the skills when they are passed through the machine fur side down. Cooperating with the brush and con-. veyor belts are guides 82 and 63, shown more clearly in Figs. 4 and 5. The guides comprise flat plates shaped preferably as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, mounted on shaft supports 64. The guides lution in tank i5.

out the fur on the treated skins to separate the fibres and to remove "dags." if present. The machine which has been described, may be hand-fed and may be used for drying raw uncarroted skins but it is particularly adapted for treating skins which have been carroted. Moreover, the machine lends itself admirably to a system of carroting and drying without time consuming intermediate conditioning and its use resuits in saving in labor and floor space.

Also, according to the invention, there is provided a machine adapted for carroting and drying in an uninterrupted single pass operation. The carroting step may be carried out in that part of the machine shown more or less conventionally in Fig. i and designated by reference character III. In general, this part of the machine comprises a feeding platform-l I, an endless flat rubber conveyor belt 12, to carry-skins to be carroted past the rotating brush #3 which picks up. carroting solution from a bath 14 of the so- Additional brushes "l6 and guides 'I'i, such as brush as and guides 5:2 and 63 shown in Fig. 4, are provided for brushing the soiution into the fur as the skins pass. pelt side up, through the carroting machine. The skins with the solution well brushed into the fur are delivered on to' the moving platform 33 where they may be inspected, if desired, prior to being carried directly through the drying machine. While only one carrot applying roll 13 has been shown for illustrative purposes, two or more such applying rolls may be provided for the purpose of applying'the carrot in divided portions.

For purposes of illustration. the operation of the machine is described inaconnection with the are positioned and fixed so that their upper edges serve to clamp the skins discharged from the pair of conveyor belts but permit the upper run 35 to carry them forward into contact with the bristles SI of the rotating brush and finally over the guide 63 from which they are delivered to chute 85. The skins may be discharged from the chute into a suitable collecting bin or otherwise handled. While the rotary brush may, in some instances, be dispensed with. it is useful to brush treatment of rabbit skins although other animal skins whose fur is used for producing fibres having felting properties may be treated in a machine constructed in accordance with the invention.

It may be assumed the raw skins have been dried preparatory to application of the carroting solution and such drying may be performed in the apparatus constructed according-to the foregoing description. The carroting solution may be applied in any known-manner either by hand or machine brushing as mentioned hereinbefore. Any of the well known types of carroting solutions. of which there are a number available, may be employed. I preferably carrot the skins by machine.

the skins are delivered directly from the carrot-- ing step and dried immediately thereafter, without the delays incident to intermediate conditionins'.

The skins are fed through the carroting mechanism Hi to the feeding platform 33 of the drying mechanism fur side down. The skins to are .clamped between the adjacent pair of parallel conveyor belts. They then pass fur side down into the interior Id of the heating chamber ill wherein the gas burners are in operation. A sufllcient number being used to insure a sufficient.

amount. of radiant heat for the quantity of skins passing through and the rate of speed of the conveyors. Air blower it supplies a continuous importantly on while the air at high velocity travels 7 blast of air which is discharged from the port i1 into the heating chamber. The air enters the heating chamber at its head end.

As the infra-red rays strike the skins in and the lower or fur side of the pelt the radiant energy penetrates the fur and is absorbed and converted into heat while simultaneously the air blast striking. the fur keeps the fur sufllciently cool to avoid singeing or burning. Moreover, the air current maintains a turbulence adjacent the skins which aids evaporation and tends to keep the individual fibres in a state of agitation whereby they are more effectively exposed to the heat rays when considered as individual fibres. This aids in accelerating chemical reaction of the carrot on the fibres. The skins then pass into the auxiliary drying tunnel H where the drying is continued over them in thesame direction to carry away evaporated moisture andfumes and where the skins are progressively cooled prior to discharge from the tunnel. The air and fumes are continuously ex hausted through the chimney 2G with the aid of the exhaust fan 26a. As the dried-skins are discharged from tunnel ll they are brushed on the fur side by the bristles Si of rotating roll 34, this brushing serving to loosen and separate any clotted fibres or dags. If desired, the skins may then be delivered directly to the cutting machines to remove the carroted fur without further intermediate conditioning, such as treatment in a piling room or conditioning room which has heretofore been common practice.

By way of example for illustrative purposes I have treated skins with excellent results in the following manner. The rabbit skins after being dried were treated with a carroting solution known in the trade as Beal McGregor carrot and immediately thereafter dried in a machine as illustrated in the drawings. The heating chamber and tunnel was approximately thirty inches wide and accommodated a conveyor belt twentyeight inches wide.

The heating chamber is was twelve inches deep permitting of placing the burners Ml about five inches from the path of travel of the skins 50. The auxiliary tunnel I i connected to the heating chamber was of the same width as the heating chamber and at its head end about the same depth of the heating chamber; the bottom wall of being inclined upwardly for a short distance of about three feet and then the tunnel ii throughout its twenty footh length was reduced to about six inches in depth. The tunnel therefore was such as to insure a high velocity to the air passing through it, the linear velocity of the air greatly exceeding the rate of travel of the skins.

Air was delivered through air duct l4 into the heating chamber at approximately 2100 C. F. M. and the burners to were fired to maintain a temperature just beyond the discharge end of the heating chamber is at abbut"300 F., ind cated by a thermometer T. The belt conveyors 2| and 24 were operated at a lineal speed which allowed the skins to pass the. zone of radiant heat in the heating chamber in about twenty seconds and to pass through the tunnel II in about three minutes.

of course these varied within limits, but temperature at the discharge ends of the heating chamber from 150 to 500 F., the time the skins are subjected to the infra-red rays from approximately operating conditions may be I prefer to l mit the the tunnel to impart thereto felting properties.

' 8 ten to thirty seconds, and the total from one to six minutes. However, I do not wish to be understood as holding these times.

must be adhered to under all sets of conditions because of variables introduced with kind of skins, kind of carrot, strength of carrot, amount of carrot applied, speed of conveyor, moisture present and like considerations. With the teachings of the disclosure, it will be a matter of adjusting the operation of the machine to obtain the desired amount of drying when the skins are discharged from the auxiliary drying tunnel.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that my invention provides a machine for rapidly drying an mal skins, the fur of which is treated The dryin by subjecting the skins to infrared rays in a high temperature zone under conditions which accelerate the desired chemical reaction between carroting solution and the fur fibres without singing or burning. Moreover, a machine constructed according to the invention is admirably suited to a combined system of carroting treatment and drying in an uninterrupted single pass without intermediate conditioning of the skins and there is provided a brushing operation after drying, if such brushing is desired. The various features of the invention'efiect a saving of labor, time and floor space. Moreover, less carroting solution may be used than in prior practices to produce the desired result. Consequently, there is less liquid to evaporate with less time required to evaporate it, as .well as-savings in chemicals. Moreover, fur'from skins treated according to the invention produce carroted fibres which have better felting properties which permits of producing stronger and better felt hats.

While certain novel features of the invention have been disclosed herein, that various omissions, substitutions and changes may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from vention comprehended by the annexed claims What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus animal skins the fur of which may be used for hat making, a heating chamber having a head end and a tail end. an elongate tunnel connected in tamdem with the interior of said chamber at its tail end, movable means providing a conveyor for conveying said skins through said chamber and tunnel, means disposed within said chamber and temperatures is accomplished only and for generating radiant ener y d e ted toward said conveyor, means for supplying air at substantially room conditions into said chamber adjacent said conveyor in the direction of travel of said, conveyor to inhibit singeing of the fur and means for exhausting said air from said tunnel.

2. In an apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which may be used for hat making, a heating chamber having a head end and a tail en an elongate tunnel connected in tandem with the interior of said chamber at its tail end, a travelling conveyor for conveying said skins through said chamber and tunnel, heating means located only within said chamber for generating radiant energy having infra-red into said chamber adjacent direction of travel of said dryin time it. will be understood the spirit and scope of the infor treating fur-bearing aasasa'r singeing oi the fur, and means for exhaustin said air from said tunnel,

3. Apparatus for drying fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which has been treated with carrot solution to prepare and condition it for felting, which apparatus comprises. a heating chamber having a, head end and a tail end, an elongate tunnel connected in tandem to the interior of said chamber at its tail end, a travelling conveyor passing through said chamber and tunnel for carrying skins therethrough to be dried, heating means only within said chamber for generating radiant energy having infra-red rays directed toward said conveyor whereby said rays strike the fur of skins carried on said travelling conveyor, means including an air moving tunnel connected in] tandem with the interior or said chamber at its tail end. a conveyor including an upper endless open mesh conveyor belt and a lower endless open mesh conveyor belt. the lower and upper runs respectively of said belts passing through said chamber and tunnel in spaced adjacent parallel relationship and pro-H viding means for clamping said skins therebemechanism for introducing air at substantially I room temperature into said chamber adjacent said conveyor, said mechanism being adapted to move air introduced into said chamber through said tunnel in the direction of travel of said conveyor at a lineal velocity greater than the speed of travel of skins carried on said travelling conveyor and means for exhausting said air from said tunnel.

4. Apparatus for drying and conditioning furbearing animal skins the fur of which has been moistened with carroting solution which apparatus comprises a heating chamber having a head end and a tail end, an elongate tunnel connected in tandem with the interior of said chamber at its tail end, a travelling conveyor for-conveying said skins through said chamber and tunnel, heating means located in said chamber only and for generating radiant heat including infra-red heat rays directed toward said travelling conveyor in said chamber, air forcing means for supplying air at substantially room temperature to said heating chamber adjacent said conveyor to inhibit singeing of the fur on skins carried through said chamber on said conveyor, said air forcing means causing air introduced into said chamber to travel through said tunnel in the direction of travel 01' said conveyor and means for exhausting said air from said tunnel, said heating chamber, tunnel, conveyor, heating means, air forcing means and air exhausting means being arranged and operative to dry said skins moistened with carrot solution in asingle pass through said apparatus. a

5. Apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which may be removed foi hat making, a heating chamber having a head end and a tail end,- an elongate tunnel connected with the interior of said chamber at its tail end, a pair oi. 'open mesh endless travelling belts passing through said chamber and tunnel in adjacentspaced relationship .for clamping skins therebetween and for carrying skins through said chamher and tunnel, heating means disposed within said chamber only and for generating radiant heat rays directed toward said belts in said chamber, means including air forcing mechanism for introducing a large volume of air at substantially room temperature into said chamber adjacent said. belts to inhibit singeing the fur, said air forcing mechanism causing the air to move through said chamber and tunnel in the direction of travel of said belts and means for exhausting said air from said tunnel.

-6. Apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which is suitable subsequently to be removed from the pelt to-produce felting fur which apparatus comprises a heating chamber having a head end and a tail end, an elongate tween and for carrying saidv skins through said chamber and thence through said tunnel, a plurality 01' gas burners located only within said chamber and for providing radiant heat rays including infra-red rays directed toward said conveyor whereby skins carried on said conveyor are struck by said heat rays, an air blower and duct for forcing air at substantially room temperature into said chamber adjacent said conveyor in the direction of travel oi said conveyor to inhibit singeing of the fur on said skins and means for exhausting said air from said tunnel.

7. In an apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which may be used for hatmaking, a heating chamber having a head end and a tail end, means disposed only within said chamber for generating radiant energy, an elongate tunnel connected in tandem with the interior 01 said chamber at its tail end, an upper endless open. mesh conveyor belt, a lower endless open mesh conveyorbelt, the lower and upper runs respectively of said belts passing through said chamber and tunnel in spaced adjacent parallel relationship providing means for clamping skins to betreated therebetween and for. carrying said skins through said chamber and thence through said tunnel, means for causing the conveyor belts totravel at variably adjusted speeds, an air duct'connected to the interior of said chamber at its head end, air blower means connected to said duct to deliver a large volume of air at substantially room temperature through said duct and to force the delivered air through said chamber and tunnel in series at high ve-.

locity over and in contact with said skins in the direction of travel of said skins carried through said chamber and tunnel and means for exhausting said air from said tunnel.

8. In apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which may be used for hatmaking, a heating chamber having a head end and a tail end, means disposed only within said chamber for generating radiant energy including infra-red rays, members disposed in said chamber to direct infra-red rays in the path of travel oi skins carried on the hereinafter mentioned conveyor, an elongate tunnel connected in tandem with the interior of said chamber at its tail end. a conveyor including an upper endless open mesh conveyor belt and a lower endless open mesh con-.

veyor belt, the lower and upper runs respectively o! said belts providing a bight and passing duct and to force the delivered air at high velocity through said chamber and tunnel in series over and in contact With said skins in the directhrough said chamber and tunnel in spaced adiasolution and subsequently removed from the pelts to produce felting fur, which comprises a heating chamber, a plurality of gas burners in said chamber providing means to generate radiant energy, an auxiliary drying tunnel connected to the interior of said chamber, means including a travelling conveyor passing through said chamber and tunnel to carry skins to be treated through said heating chamber, refractory elements adjacent said burners to direct infra-red rays of said radiant energy into the path of travel of skins carried by said conveyor, means to operate said conveyor means at variably atfiusted speeds, an air duct connected to said chamber, air blower means to deliver .a lar e volume of air through said duct into said chamber over and in contact with skins carried on said conveyor and thence through said tunnel at a linear velocity greater than the speed of movement of the skins. a brush adapted to contact skins carried through saidtunnel, and means through which to exhaust air introduced into said. tunnel, said chamber, burners, tunnel, conveyor, air blower. and duct being so arranged and operative to dry carroted skins in a single pass through said apparatus to condition said skins for removal of fur forthwith from the pelts in suitable state for felting.

- skins without substantial 12 skins delivered into said chamber to dry said delay after carroting solution has been applied to them in said-carroting mechanism; means to move air through said chamber'to maintain the air in a state of turbulence adjacent the skins being heated therein, and means, including a conveyor, to carry skins through said carroting mechanism and chamber.

said conveyor mechanism being arranged to carry skins continuously and without substantial interruption through said carroting mechanism and chamber.

13. Apparatus for carroting and drying furbearing animal skins the fur of which may be 10. In apparatus for treating fur-bearing ani- 1 mal skins, a carrot applying brush; mounted for rotation, means for applying carroting solution to said brush, travelling means for carrying said skins past and in contact with said brush whereby to apply carrot solution to the fur of said skins, a heating chamber, means disposed within said chamber to generate radiant energy, an-

auxiliary drying tunnel connected to the interior of said chamber, means for supplying a large volume of air to said chamber and tunnel, and conveyor means to carry said skins through said chamber and tunnel after said skins have passed said carrot applying brush.

11. Apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which is to be removed from the pelt to produce fur forfeiting which apparatus comprises a carroting mechanism, including means for applying carroting solution to the fur side or the skins as the skins are passed therethrough; a chamber into which said skins are delivered after the application of carroting solution to the fur thereon in said carroting mechanism: heating means for supplying heat to the skins delivered into said chamber to dry said skins without substantial delay after carroting solution has been applied to them in said carrotins mechanism; and means to move air through said chamber to maintain the air in a state of turbulence adjacent the skins being heated therein. and means, including a conveyor, to carry skins through said carroting mechanism and chamber.

12. Apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which is to be removed from the pelt to produce fur for felting which apparatus comprises a carroting mechanism, including means for applying carroting solution to the fur side of the skins as the skins are passed therethrough; a chamber into which said skins are delivered after the application of .carroting solution to the fur thereon in said carroting mechanism; heating means for supplying heat to the removed from the pelts as felting fur which apparatus comprises a carroting mechanism which includes a brush for applying carrot solution to the fur side of said skins, a receptacle to supply carrot solution to said brush and means to carry skins past and in contact with said brush; and a drying and conditioning, mechanism to which carroted skins are delivered from said carroting mechanism;,said drying and conditioning mechanism comprising a heating chamber, a tunnel connected to said heating chamber, a fan to force air through said chamber and then through said tunnel and a conveyor to carry skins there- 'through; said carroting mechanism. and drying said conditioning mechanism being so arranged and operative to apply carrot solution to the skins and thereafter to dry the skins in a single pass through said carroting and drying mechanisms.

14. Apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which is to be removed from the pelt to produce fur for felting which apparatusskins without substantial delay after carroting solution has been applied to them in said carroting mechanism; means to move air through said chamber to maintain the air in a state of turbulence adjacent the skins being heated therein, means, including a conveyor, to carry skins through said carroting mechanism and chamber, and brushing means on said apparatus to contact and brush the fur on skins passed through said chamber.

15. In an apparatus for treating fur-bearing animal skins the fur of which may be used for hatmaking, a heating chamber, means disposed within saidchamber for generating radiant energy, an elongate, tunnel connected with the interior of said chamber at its tail end. an upper endless open mesh conveyor belt, a lower endlessopen mesh conveyor belt, the lower and upper runs respectively of said belts passing through said chamber and tunnel in spaced adjacent parallel relationship providing means for clamping skins to be treated therebetween and for carrying said skins through said chamber and thence through said tunnel, members disposed in said chamber to direct infra-red rays upon the surface of skins carried by said conveyor, an air duct connected to the interior of said chamber at one end, air blower means connected to said duct to deliver a large volume of air through said duct and to force the delivered air at high velocityover and in contact with, said skins in thedirection. 'of travel of said skins carried through said chamsome? 13. her and tunnel, a. brush mounted for rotation adjacent the end of said tunnel and means including guide members to cause the fur on skins discharged from said tunnel to pass said brush in brushing contact therewith. v ROBERT E. NAUMBURG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Sanders et a1. Aug. 20, 1895 Number Number Certificate of Correction Patent No. 2,438,227. March 23, 1948.

ROBERT E. NAUMBURG It is hereby certified that errors appear in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Column 12, line 29, claim 13, for the word said before conditioning read and; column 14, line 4, List of References Cited, for the patent number 1,622,933 read 1,662,983; after'line 14, add the following reference- 2,281,184 Dykstra et a1 Apr. 28, 1942 and that the said Letters Patent should be read with these corrections therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Ofiice.

Signed and sealed this 25th day of May, A. D. 1948.

THOMAS F. MURPHY,

Assistant Oommissiomr of Patents 

